Ep. 40 // Vaetchanan ... the answer is no

How do you ask a friend, a loved one, an acquaintance, a coworker for something? Do you remind them of the deeds you’ve done for them? Do you remind them how much they love you? Do you simply ask? According to Rashi, Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, the way to do it is to simply ask. Those who are righteous do not expect their rewards in this world, Olam HaZe. They know their rewards await them in the world to come - Olam HaBaa. And this sort of straight-up ask is what Moshe Rabbenu, Moses our Teacher, does in this week’s parsha - VaEtchanan. As we have read before, Moshe was prohibited from entering the Land of Israel with B’nei Yisrael, but that didn’t stop him from pleading, praying to G-d to be let in. Not even to live there or lead the people! He was just asking G-d to be able to enter the land, walk it, and observe the mitzvot that can only be observed there. According to the Midrash, Moshe implored G-d 515 times to enter (because the Gematria / numerical value of the word Vaetchanan - וָֽאֶתְחַנַּ֖ן, meaning “I implored” is 515 - 515 is also the numerical value of my name, Shira - which means “singing” as well as the word Tefillah / תפלה which means “prayer”. Lots of symbolism there.) G-d commands Moshe to stop praying — implying that if Moshe would have sent out his 516th prayer, he would have been allowed into the Land. Perhaps Moshe knew that this 516th prayer would have been the ticket — especially after being explicitly told NOT to continue. And yet he listens. If you wanted something and knew you were thiiiiiis close to pushing the outcome over the edge, wouldn’t you be tempted to keep wheedling? I know I would. Here we learn that prayer does not fall on deaf ears. Our prayers are always answered, but sometimes the answer is “no.” And sometimes we understand immediately why that was the case, other times it takes years, and most likely, we will never know. But prayer isn’t just for G-d to see how righteous we are. Prayer is also a reflective experience - as well as a reflexive one, too. This is a common concept to reference, but the Hebrew verb להתפלל - LeHitpalel (to pray) is reflexive, meaning you do the praying to yourself. How can that be? Aren’t we asking G-d for something? Yes, but we also pray for the sake of ourselves. When we articulate our desires, we are able to visualize what we want. But how do we deal with the denial? Emunah, faith. Or recognition that we are simple human beans (yes, beans) that cannot comprehend the ways of the world. That isn’t a very comforting thought, but it can be if we have proper context. I am always working on this, but off the top of my head right this moment, I can think of 5 instances where I davened (prayed) and cried over some experience / job / person only to see that the outcome I desired was 100% the incorrect one. I try to remind myself of these truths when I’m frustrated with what I am perceiving as a “no.” So back to this word Vaetchanan - וָֽאֶתְחַנַּ֖ן, meaning to beg or plead — it’s rooted in the Hebrew word Chinun - חִנּוּן, which, according to Rashi, implies requesting a free gift. This reminds me of something I once heard about the concept of love. If you asked someone you love why they love you, it would be nice to hear a few reasons. “Your incomparable wit… your incredible emotional intelligence… your beautiful eyes! Etc.” But what if these reasons were to go away? Would the love go away, too? Cont’d… For full text, email me at [email protected] or join my email list here. opening theme: reCreation by airtone (c) copyright 2019 Licensed